Status: 31.08.2023, 04:50 a.m.
By: Martina Lippl
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Fascinating sea creature: A lung jellyfish (Rhizostoma pulmo) in blue water (symbolic photo). Off Ibiza, divers discovered a special specimen. © Inger Vandyke/imago
Jellyfish are more likely to trigger a queasy feeling in holidaymakers. Now a huge specimen has been spotted off the Balearic island. The reactions on the net are mixed.
Evissa – In the sea off the coast of Ibiza, an impressive sea creature is causing a stir: a lung jellyfish – scientifically also called Rhizostoma pulmo. This jellyfish off the Balearic island was of enormous size. Divers filmed and photographed the creature. The footage of this moment is fascinating, because these medusae can hardly be seen otherwise.
Surprising find off Ibiza: Divers discover rare 40-kilogram lung jellyfish
The lung jellyfish with its transparent umbrella of a size of 60 centimeters seems to float over the undulating sandy bottom near the beach. The water shimmers turquoise, sunlight breaks through the surface. One photo shows the bare feet of a surfer sitting on a board. The exciting pictures have been posted on Instagram by the account called supibiza.
"Just when you think you've seen it all, a 40-kilo jellyfish comes along with the urge to paddle," comments supibiza. Lung jellyfish are common in the Mediterranean, but rarely is it possible to spot and photograph one of this size.
Giant jellyfish off holiday island: "I don't really want to paddle in Ibiza anymore"
Reactions to the giant jellyfish are mixed. "I don't really want to paddle in Ibiza anymore," says one user. "I hope the jellyfish are far away when we go there," comments another. Some just post a lot of emojis with a startled expression on their faces. We are stunned that there is such a jellyfish off Ibiza at all. Even experienced fishermen, the sea always holds amazing surprises, such as a giant Pacific octopus off the coast of California.
"It was a bit scary, but she was pretty," an eyewitness apparently describes the moment with the giant jellyfish in the Mediterranean. "There's a lot of sushi," someone even jokes.
Fascinating sea creature: A lung jellyfish (Rhizostoma pulmo) in blue water (symbolic photo). Off Ibiza, divers discovered a special specimen. © Inger Vandyke/imago
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Ibiza: Are giant jellyfish actually dangerous?
The species is one of the largest jellyfish species in the Mediterranean. Despite their size, lung jellyfish are harmless to humans, as Spanish marine biologist Manu San Félix points out in a study after a sighting of bathers in 2021.
"There is no danger to humans from a lung jellyfish," the marine biologist said, according to Ibiza Live Report. However, the pink fringe of the lung jellyfish has stinging cells. On contact, this can lead to unpleasant reactions. If you want to eat lung jellyfish, you should be familiar with how to prepare them. In the Italian seaside resort of Jesolo, a woman collected dozens of jellyfish on the beach and laid them out to dry, according to Merkur.de. However, there are also jellyfish, such as the fire jellyfish, whose contact can be quite painful.
In addition to the Mediterranean Sea, lung jellyfish can also be found on the Atlantic coast of Europe, in the North and Baltic Seas, as well as in the Black Sea. Lung jellyfish are particularly common in the "Mar Menor" (in German: smaller sea). The saltwater lagoon on the Spanish Mediterranean coast in the region of Murcia is considered a jellyfish hotspot, Spanish media report.
But in the depths of the sea, a U.S. research team has already created a small sensation. Using a diving robot, they took amazing pictures of a "phantom jellyfish". The habitat on and in the water is full of beautiful surprises, but not only. In Australia, sandworms usually live hidden under the sandy beach. A video about their existence is circulating on the net and shocking many. (ml)